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I was shocked the other day when I was reading a thread where someone was complaining about the "weeds" in their grass. Shocked at the advice and what people do to their yards, all in the name of perfect grass. All that poison and stripping and killing!
I embrace all the various types of clover, thyme, selfheal, and so many other things that grow in my yard. I am hoping the thyme will take over the tiny front yard completely eventually. I want a purple yard in front!
In the larger back yard I left little patches unmowed all summer to see what would grow in them. Some grew ground bumble bees, which I discovered when I mowed one patch and they objected lol. But it's amazing what has come up over the season, and still getting some new things. I even have some asters!
I've planned all along to have an aster garden at some point, but two types have come up in one of my wild patches, all on their own!
I keep it mowed because codes would be after me if I didn't, but no one has complained about my little wild patches in back.
I was shocked the other day when I was reading a thread where someone was complaining about the "weeds" in their grass. Shocked at the advice and what people do to their yards, all in the name of perfect grass. All that poison and stripping and killing!
I embrace all the various types of clover, thyme, selfheal, and so many other things that grow in my yard. I am hoping the thyme will take over the tiny front yard completely eventually. I want a purple yard in front!
In the larger back yard I left little patches unmowed all summer to see what would grow in them. Some grew ground bumble bees, which I discovered when I mowed one patch and they objected lol. But it's amazing what has come up over the season, and still getting some new things. I even have some asters!
I've planned all along to have an aster garden at some point, but two types have come up in one of my wild patches, all on their own!
I keep it mowed because codes would be after me if I didn't, but no one has complained about my little wild patches in back.
Well, there are weeds and other weeds. I leave the clover on my lawn because it attracts bees and other pollinators and is actually more of a ground cover. Then there are weeds like broadleaf plantain, yellow woodsorrel, spotted spurge, and bermuda grass which are simply ugly and will grow into garden beds (they love mulched beds!) and are difficult to eliminate without treatment in some cases. I pull and pull on some of these weeds in my garden beds but I do plan to use corn gluten meal on the lawn. It's an organic form of pre-emergent weed control. I'm not looking for a pristine lawn (if I eliminated all weeds I'd have NO back lawn) but I'd like to help my front lawn look better around the garden beds. My best solution has been to eliminate as much lawn as possible by creating 14 garden beds in 2.5 years.
Well, there are weeds and other weeds. I leave the clover on my lawn because it attracts bees and other pollinators and is actually more of a ground cover. Then there are weeds like broadleaf plantain, yellow woodsorrel, spotted spurge, and bermuda grass which are simply ugly and will grow into garden beds (they love mulched beds!) and are difficult to eliminate without treatment in some cases. I pull and pull on some of these weeds in my garden beds but I do plan to use corn gluten meal on the lawn. It's an organic form of pre-emergent weed control. I'm not looking for a pristine lawn (if I eliminated all weeds I'd have NO back lawn) but I'd like to help my front lawn look better around the garden beds. My best solution has been to eliminate as much lawn as possible by creating 14 garden beds in 2.5 years.
I'm thinking of going that route eventually, as much as possible. I can't now, I work full time and am just too tired to work on gardens. Mowing once a week is about all I can manage until I retire. And no money for that kind of stuff right now either. But I've seen a few yards where they just have perennial gardens all over, so they don't have to mow at all, though I suppose managing the gardens take work as well, depending on how wild you want to let them grow (I prefer wild)
I'm thinking of going that route eventually, as much as possible. I can't now, I work full time and am just too tired to work on gardens. Mowing once a week is about all I can manage until I retire. And no money for that kind of stuff right now either. But I've seen a few yards where they just have perennial gardens all over, so they don't have to mow at all, though I suppose managing the gardens take work as well, depending on how wild you want to let them grow (I prefer wild)
I'm a Master Gardener, so I don't let my gardens just grow wild. I'm always searching for new and improved plants (especially natives) and where I can place them in the landscape where they'll look good and thrive. I've also become more organized and specific with my plantings than I was in my old yard. Yes, managing the gardens takes work, but it's worth it to me. I love having butterflies, bees, and birds around and the waterfall and pond attract frogs and critters as well. Hopefully the yard will be recognized as a Certified Wildlife Habitat in the next year.
A manicured, mono-crop lawn is a relative wasteland, and this social norm is a major reason bird, insect, reptile & amphibian populations are in decline as urban sprawl destroys habitat.
The English garden style (more plantings and less grass lawn) would be much more friendly to natural populations. ...If anybody thinks lawns help keep rodents and other pests away from the house, they are deluding themselves.
BTW-- my "lawn" is the 1000 sq ft directly in front of my earth berm house built in the middle of pasture that I'm allowing to return to natural meadow....Plenty of clover and plantains growing, and amazingly, I've observed that the various bees/wasps prefer plantain flowers to the clover blooming just a few inches away. We see in the visible light spectrum. Those pollinators see in the ultra-violet. The plantain look prettier to them. Your weeds are other's pretty flowers.
Where I live, water is expensive. My lot is 100' x 150' and watering a lawn in summer could easily cost several hundred dollars a month. Also I don't want any weed killers in my yard. Don't want to bother with fertilizer or lawn food either. So whatever grows without water or attention is welcome. I pay someone to cut the lawn short every two weeks and as long as it is neat and green I am happy with it. I have grass, crabgrass, clover, heather, dandelions, and several kinds of weeds and mushrooms. A couple of years ago I dug up two large flower beds and planted crab grass. Just didn't want to pull weeds any more from the flower beds. Now if we have flowers in pots we hang them on the back deck rail or from shepherd's hooks in front of the front porch. We skipped the flowers this year. Neither of us has the energy to do much gardening any more. Last week I cleared a bunch of vines growing through the chain link back fence from the woods behind our back yard. That was my gardening for the year.
I maintain a "lawn" by weekly mowing to preserve defensible space around the house in case of wildfire. It is more than an acre in size. We get rain frequently enough I don't irrigate anything. Very little goes brown mid summer. If it does, it isn't dead and will green up again next spring. Instead of messing with the majority of the 3.5 acre property I plant some colorful annuals in containers on the deck and in front of the house.
The lawn planting is recent enough that the grass is just starting to be invaded by the more aggressive native and non-native broad leaves. I've struggled a bit trying to decide whether to bother keeping it grass or not, but frankly, I'm leaning toward not wasting the effort. Everything I try to eradicate will just show up over and over again because those species are well established on the surrounding neighbor's places. They are older. I wouldn't use herbicide and contaminate anyone else's well or damage the native vegetation surrounding the lawn. It provides habitat for all the wildlife I also enjoy seeing.
I like just about all of the native flowering perennials. They were well established before the house existed and weren't disturbed during construction. They prevent erosion and more invasive weed spread. The most I might do is relocate a particular favorite closer to the house so I can see it more easily. We grow moose here too. If you really insist on keeping them from eating the exotic species you went to all the trouble to plant (they know...the most expensive plants get chewed down to nubs first), that requires at least an 8' solid fence with a serious foundation. They can easily push most fencing over. Then of course there's snow loading to deal with. No way am I going to fence 3.5 acres. Much rather kick back and enjoy the moose. They eat some of the grass too, but their mouths don't come equipped with a cut height adjustment.
Last edited by Parnassia; 09-18-2021 at 04:50 PM..
Those who think letting their lawn grow "naturally" with weeds in them obviously doesn't know they are reducing the value of their property and those around them. Just the fact. Weeds are an eye sore. Even though you aren't selling now, its harder to get an established lawn quick vs maintaining one.
When the area of your yard has been disturbed to build a house it will no longer be “natural” no matter what you do. To go back to natural would take decades of succession and the new shade and water and compaction would never recreate the original.
So the best you can hope for is something new that mixes well with the environment. You have a chance to choose attractive combinations but they may require maintenance. You have a chance to do nothing, but the weeds you grow might contaminate nearby areas where they push out the advanced ecosystems. As a result it’s more the level of attention you wish to give in order to be compatible with the truly natural slices that are left outside of the disturbed housing zones.
Doesn't anyone else let their yards grow naturally?
Have you ever heard of HOA"s.
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